Brandon Williamson heads home as Reds take on Twins

Q: What is Brandon Williamson's connection to Minnesota?

Brandon Williamson was born in Fairmont, Minnesota, and attended Martin County West High School in Sherburn.

Q: How have the Cincinnati Reds performed recently?

The Reds have gone 3-5 in their last 8 games and rank among the worst in the majors for runs scored and slugging percentage.

Q: Who is starting for the Minnesota Twins in the game against the Reds?

The Twins are set to start ace Joe Ryan in the series opener against the Reds.

Q: What time is the Reds vs. Twins game scheduled for?

The game between the Cincinnati Reds and Minnesota Twins is scheduled for 8:10 PM ET.

CINCINNATI, OHIO - APRIL 11: Brandon Williamson #55 of the Cincinnati Reds pitches during the game against the Los Angeles Angels at Great American Ball Park on April 11, 2026 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Cincinnati Reds/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Brandon Williamson was born in Fairmont, Minnesota, which is roughly a two hour drive south of Target Field in Minneapolis. He went to Martin County West High School just down I-90 in Sherburn, and to date registers as the lone player from that program to ever crack the big leagues. He’ll be on the mound in his home state on Friday evening as the Cincinnati Reds begin a three-game weekend series against the Minnesota Twins, and he’s expecting a big, big crowd of local folk in the stands to cheer him on. That’s pretty damn special, and hopefully he’ll dazzle them the way he dazzled the crowd in Miami on April 6th when he fired 6.2 IP of 3 H, 0 ER, 4 K, BB ball across 93 pitches. (That’s the hope since in his other two starts in 2026 he’s combined for 9 ER in 8.2 IP with 8 walks against just 6 punchouts.) The Reds as a whole enter the series somewhat sideways. They just split a 6 game homestand against the Los Angeles Angels and , respectively, and have gone just 3-5 in their last 8 games overall. They did take 2 of 3 against the Giants, though yesterday’s series finale saw them tally just one (1) hit – and that came from PJ Higgins, who you usually don’t even want to be playing. They also finished the game with something of a bluff-brawl against , so we’ll see if that had any residual charge-up for them when they face the Twins. The Twins, meanwhile, are rolling. They’re 11-8 like the Reds (and sit atop the AL Central), but they’ve won 8 of their last 10 against some class competition in , , and . They’re also lined up to send ace to the mound for tonight’s series opener, so Cincinnati’s offense has a lot on its table from the get-go. Speaking of Cincinnati’s offense, their 64 runs scored on the season ranks 3rd worst in the majors. Their collective 77 wRC+ is worsted only by the . Somehow, their .333 slugging percentage is 3rd worst in the game despite them having two players – and – ranking among the Top 7 (and ties) in homers across the entire league. ’s .154 slugging percentage is the worst among 188 qualified big leaguers, to date. Of the 277 players who’ve logged at least 40 PA so far this season, Ke’Bryan Hayes owns a spectacularly awful -44 wRC+ that’s far and away the worst (with San Francisco’s second worst at -9). Cincinnati’s outfield production as a whole has amounted to just a 39 wRC+, a mark that’s tied with the Giants for the worst overall unit in the game. So, there’s a lot of improving that needs to happen, and it needs to happen fast. They’ll get their next chance tonight at 8:10 PM ET in Minneapolis.